Casting device



Feb. 27, 1940.-

. L.. HQQPER CASTING DEVICE 2 sheets-sheet 1 Filed Aug. l5, 1938 .M /75NTOR BERT L HOOPER Feb. 27, 1940. 'I B L, HQOPERx 2,192,043

, I CASTING DEVICE Filed Aug, 15, 193s sheets-sheet 2 6 d Z5 e 7 f5 47acom . l ,g77-sf.

A Patented Feii.27,194o

UNITlszD STATES 'PATENT ori-ICE This invention relates to castingdevices, and more particularly pertains to such a' device mainly foremployment in dental work to produce such castings as inlays and bridgesfor teeth and the like.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide such a device having arotating mould, and

wherein thev casting medium, such as gold usually employed in dentalwork, may be released from the melting means and directed into the mouldby centrifugal force under a constant pressure While the mould isrotating at a constant high rate of speed, to produce a casting havinguniformity of hardness throughout its various l5 portions.

Another object is to provide such a device wherein the gold may bebrought to the proper melting point for casting, and then initiallydirected into the mould Within the shortest possibletime while the mouldis rotating.

Another object is to provide such a device wherein the possibility ofmolten gold escaping from the device during the casting operation ispractically eliminated.

Another object is to provide such a device having a mould constructed ofa plastic substance.

such as plaster usually employed in dental work,v

and wherein the device vwill be capable of trapping any molten gold thatmay be discharged from the mould in the event same becomes damagedduring the casting operation.

The type of casting device to which this invention relates includes'arotating upright or shaft;

as power means for rotating the shaft at a high rate of speed; a carriermember mounted on theshaft to rotate therewith; means on the'carrier forattaching thereto to one side of the axis of the shaft any one of anumber of moulds of various 40 sizes or Weight; an adjustablecounterpoise on the carrier for counterbalancing the mould, and

means for directing a molten casting medium into the mould radiaiiy ofthe axis ofthe shaft by centrifugal force upon rotationof the shaft. Tomake it possible for an operator of the device to determine with areasonable degree of certainty that the counterpoise properlycounterbalances a mould placed on the carrier prepara,

tory to the casting operation, without depending vention to so mount thecarrier on the shaft whereby it may pivot thereon in the manner of ascale at least prior to the casting operation, so

u that the mould may be weighed thereonI against upon guesswork, it is afurther` object of this inthe counterpoise in determining the properadjustment of the counterpoise. l

' In carrying out `the above objects, it is a further object to providereleasable holding means for holding the carrier in its balancedposition on 5 the shaft after proper adjustment of the counterpoise hasbeen made, and wherein the holding means will coact to position orsupport the directing means in cooperative relation with the mould toeliminate the possibility of the device 10 being set into operationwhile the carrier is `free to pivot on the shaft. i

Other objects and advantages will become ap parent by reference tothespecication and the accompanying drawings, in which: l Fig. 1 is averticalV section of the casting device embodying one form of theinvention. 1 Fig. 2 is a detail vertical section of a part of thedevice. as may be taken substantially on the section line 2--2 ofFig. 1. 20

Fig. 3 is a plan section of the device, as taken substantially on thesection line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary plan view of the device,

as indicated by the arrow 4 in Fig. 1. l Fig. 5 is a fragmentarysectional view of the 25.

upper portion of the device similar to Fig. l, showing some parts inside elevation and showing other parts in changed position.

Fig. 6 is a detail section taken substantially on the section line 6 -6of Fig. 5. i 30 Fig. 7 is an enlarged detail of certain parts as'substantiallyseen in Fig. l, certain parts shown in side elevation.

Fig. 8 is a vertical section of Fig. 7. as taken substantially on thesection line 8 8 of Fig. 7. 35 I Fig. 9 is a fragmentary view of certainparts as substantially seen in Fig. 5, but illustrating a mould of aform differing from that seen in Fig. 5.

Fig.'10 is a sectional detail taken substantially on the section lineIll-l0 of Fig. 9. 40

Fig. 11 is a fragmentary perspective o'f certain cooperating parts ofthe device. v,

The casting device, Ias illustrated, includes an upright cylindricalhousing I having upper and lowercompartments v2 v'and 3, respectively.ysepa- 45 rated by a disc-like partition 4. The partition 4 rests upon anannular ledge 5 within the housing and is secured in place thereon bymeans of screws 6 threaded in the base `1 of the housing.v The housingalso includesa disc-like cover 8 which is hinged on the housing, as at9. A pair of stops lll may be provided on the housingat the hingedconnection tov be engaged by the edgey of the cover to hold the cover inan open position. u

Arranged within the lower compartment 3 and mounted on the base 1, is anelectric motor II having a vertically disposed driving shaft I2 arrangedcentral with the housing and projecting through a bearing aperture I4 inthe partition to extend into the upper compartment 2.

An electrical circuit connection is provided on the housing for themotor. Said connection comprises a connector of conventional designincluding a terminal block I5, of insulating material, mounted in anaperture in the wall of the housing, and having spaced terminal pins I6and I1 connected with the terminals IB and IS of the motor throughconductors 20 and 2 I, respectively. Included in the conductor 20 is aswitch, of conventional design, as seen at 22, mounted in an aperture inthe wall of the housing for controlling energization of the motor.

Disposed within the upper compartment 2 and mounted on the shaft I2, torotate therewith, is a mould carrier 25. In accordance with certainobjects of the invention, the carrier mounts a mould at one side of theaxis of the shaft and counterbalancing means therefor at the side ofsaid axis opposite the mould. 'Ihe carrier is also mounted on the motorshaft for `pivotal movement in a vertical plane about a horizontal axisintersecting the axis of the shaft so that the mould thereon may beweighed against the counterbalancing` means,l with releasable holdingmeans being provided for normally holding the carrier in its balancedposition on the shaft during the casting operation, as will behereinafter more fully described. The mould carrier comprises a normallyhorizontal arm portion 26 extending from one side of the shaft I2 andhaving the mould counter-balancing means supported thereon.

The mould counter-balancing means includes a pair of weights 21 and 2lof different sizes, each having a depending screw formation 29 adaptedto be received lin one of a series of threaded apertures 30 in the armportion 26 and spaced therealong to enable adjustment of the weights onthe arm.

The mould carrier 25 also includes a mouldsupporting arm portion 3|arranged on the side of the shaft I2 opposite the arm portion 26. Thearm portion II comprises a rod bent in the form of an open rectangular;frame having horizontally disposed side-rod portions 32 joined at theirouter ends by a transverse end-rod portion 33. The side-rod portions 32continue at their inner ends into converging portions 34 having endssoldered or otherwise xedly secured within apertures in the sides of thearm portion 26.

Detachably mounted within the frame of the arm portion II is amould-positioning member, or mould adaptor 35, to position a mould of a.certain shape, as for instance a box-shaped mould seen in Figs. 1 and 2.Said mould adaptor 35 comprises a metallic strip bent in the form of achannel-section or trough having a bottom portion 36 and upright sides31 provided with turned-over or hooked top edges 38 adapted to be hookedover the side-rod portions 32 of the arm portion 3|. The member 35cooperates with the frame of the arm portion JI to form a basket orpocket adapted to receive and position a boxlike mould 39 for producingsuch large castings as bridges or dentures, or the like.

The mould I9 is clamped in position in the mould adaptor 15 by aclamping member 40.. The member 4I is in the form of a lever comprisinga spring strip having a loop formation 4I at one end formed about one ofthe side-rod portions of the mould carrier to provide a pivotalconnection therewith. From its pivotal connection, the clamping member4I) continues over the mould and terminates at its free end in a hookformation 42 adapted to be hooked over the other side-rod portion of themould carrier, and being arranged to cause the clamping lever to havepressure engagement with the top of the mould. Thus the clampinglever'4IJ serves to hold both the mould and its adaptor 36 in positionon the mould carrier. The hooked edges of the sides of the mould adaptor35 are recessed at their mid portions, as at 43, to receive the hook andpivotal formations of the clamping lever 40, and to permit detachment ofthe mould adaptor from the mould carrier when the clamping lever isreleased from the mould.

The mould is composed of a hardened plastic substance, such as plaster,incased within an open-ended rectangular casing 45 of sheet metal. Themould has an'outwardly flared inlet opening 46 directed toward the axisof the motor shaft I2 for receiving the molten casting medium directedtherein by centrifugal force by directing means, arranged on the motorshaft, as the carrier is rotated by the motor at a constant high rate ofspeed.

The directing means includes a cup-shaped member or vessel 41 disposedcoaxial with and detachably mounted upon the top end of the motor shaftI2. The vessel 41 has a spout-like outlet 41a at its bottom arranged toextend within the inlet of the mould central therewith.

The vessel is composed of a plastic substance, such as plaster, and isso formed internally that as the molten medium or gold is suppliedtherein, by ladling means arranged on the cover 8, the gold will beforcibly directed or deflected downward in the vessel toward its outlet,and then directed outward into the mould by centrifugal force within theshortest possible time while the carrier may be rotating at a constanthigh rate of speed in a clockwise direction, as viewed in plan. By soforcibly directing the molten gold into the mould, the casting producedwill have uniformity of hardness. To this end, as best seen in Figs. 1,3, 7 and 8, the vessel 41 is formed with a tapered bore 4B havingside-wall portions flared outwardly and downwardly to the bottom of thevessel. The vessel also has a spiroconically-shaped bottom 49 having aspirally formed side-wall portion 50 tapering upward from the side-wallof the vessel to a point of the aXis of the vessel and forming, with thewall portions of the bore, a spirally extending V-shaped groove orchannel-way 5I in the bottom of the vessel terminating at its lowestpoint in register with the outlet of the vessel. At the outlet passageof the vessel the groove 5I is provided with an end-wall 52 extendingradially of the axis of the vessel in register with a side-Wall of theoutlet and slanting upward and forward in the direction of travel orrotation of the vessel to further insure deflection of the molten goldinto the outlet of the vessel.

For detachably mounting the vessel 41 on the motor shaft I2, so that adamaged vessel may be quickly replaced, the vesselis positioned snuglyWithin a cup-shaped positioning member 5l which in turn is detachablymounted on the top end of the motor shaft. The positioning member 53 hasa vertical slot 54 in its side-wall to receive and'm'sition the spoutoutlet of the vessel.

in register with the inlet of the mould. For detachably mountingthepositioning member 53 on the motor shaft, said member is providedwith a sleeve portion or socket formation 55 depending centrally fromits-bottom4 and adapted to be. snugly received on the top end of themotor shaft I2. The member 53 is keyed to the shaft |2 torotatetherewith byhaving its sleeve portion 55 provided with I opposeddownwardly extending slots 58 adaptedhto'receive a` pin 51 which extendshorizontally through the motor shaft so as to intersect theaxis thereof.i

In accordance with .the invention, the mould carrier isfulcrumed uponthe pin 51 for its pivotal movement, but is arranged to be normallyengaged by the sleeve portion and held thereby in a .fixed position withrespect to the motor and 11the carrier arm portion 26 has its inner endprovided with a circular opening 58 which is largerin diameter than themotor shaft and through whichbpening the shaft extends, with the pin 51having its ends rotatably received within bearing apertures 59 providedin the arm portion at opposite sides of the opening. When the sleeveportion 55 of the positioning member 53 is received on the motor shaftit is adapted to snugly iit within the opening 58 of the arm portion 26,whereby the carrier will be rmly held by said sleeve portion in a xedposition .with respect to the motor shaft as it rotates therewith. Whenthe sleeve portion 55 is removed from the opening 58, the shaft beingfreely received within said opening will permit the carrier 25 to pivoton the pin 51 for the purpose of enabling an operator to weigh the mouldon the carrier against the counterweights 21 and 28, in deter- Vminingthe proper adjustment of the counterweights on the arm portion 26 priorto the casting operation.

The ladling means comprises a cupped ladle 60, composed of a suitableplastic substance, detachably mounted upon the ladle carrier 6| which ispivotally mounted on the cover 8, as at 62, and

insure proper direction of the metal into the vessel. To this end, theouter end portion 86 of the passage of the spout 64 extends at rightangles to the axis of the ladle, and the inner portion 61 of saidpassage curves upward as it continues into the ladle. The inner portion61 of the passage of the spout forms a baille wall or Weir formation 68between the spout and the interior of the ladle, with the Weir being soarranged under the upper portion 69 of the cupped wall of the ladlethat, as the ladle is initially tilted, the molten metal in the ladlewill be deected over the weir and against said upper wall portion withsuch force as to cause suflicient retardation in the rate of flow of themetal to ,permit the ladle toapproach its finally tilted ypositionbefore the metal will ow from the passage 68 into the vessel 41.

The ladle carrier 6| is in the form of a troughshaped member having aflat bottom '1D provided with upwardly converging side-walls 1| and anend-wall 12 forming a dovetailed trough having one end open. The ladleis formed with upwardly tapering or converging outer sides 13 adapted tosnugly fit within the trough or carrier," with the spout of the ladleprojecting through an aperture 14 in the end-wall of the trough- Thusthe ladlemay be removed from the open-end of the trough andreplacedquickly'in the event the ladle bel- .comes damaged. The ladlecarrier may be provided with a handle 15,-which may extend from theopen-end of the carrier and rest upon the cover of the housing' tosupport the ladle 'inits upright position.

The invention also contemplates 'providing mould adaptors for the mouldcarrier that may accommodate moulds having shapes differing from that ofthe mould previously described. To accomplish this, as seen in Figs. 9and 10, a channel-shaped mould carrier 18 is provided, being formed ofsheet metal and including a bottom 11 and sides 18 provided with hookedtop edges 19, similar to the mould carrier or adaptor 35, to be hookedover the side-rod portions 32 of the mould carrier. The bottom portion11 of the adaptor 16 'is formed with an arcuately shaped depression-orrecess 80 extending longitudinally from about the mid-section of thebottom, and within which recess va cylindrically shaped mould 8| isadapted to be recel'r d and held in position in cooperative relatif/6ththe vessel 41 by the clamping lever 40.-?? e mould 8| is of the typeemployed Yfor producing such small castings as inlays, or the like, forteeth'. Said mould 8| may be composed of a plastic substance, such asplaster, incased within a cylindrical casing 82 and having an inletpassage 83 adapted to register with the outlet of the vessel 41 when themould is clamped in position on the adaptor 16. Brake means is providedfor stopping rotation of the mould carrier as it rotates by force ofmomentum afterrthe motor is turned oi. Said brake means includes a brakerod 84 disposed radially of the motor shaft and below the partition 4,and being reciprocably mounted in spaced bearings 85 depending from thepartition. On the inner-end of the brake rod is secured a brake shoe 86adapted to engage a brake wheel 81 secured on the motor shaft |2. Thebrake shoe is resiliently held against one of the bearings 85 out ofengagement with the brake wheel by a coil spring 88 which surrounds thebrake rod and is interposed under compression between a collar 89 on theouter end of the rod and the adjacent bearing 85. For actuating thebrake rod to cause application of the brake shoe to the brake wheel. thecollar 89 has a threaded bore receiving the threaded stem 90 of a knob9|. The knob is disposed exteriorly of the housing with its stem 90passing freely through an opening 92 in the wall of the housing. Thusthe knob may be detached from the brake rod to enable removal of thepartition from the housing. Also the brake shoe may have its brake wheelengaging-surface 93 formed arcuately in accordance with the periphery ofthe wheel. A general explanation of the operation of th casting devicewill now be dwelt upon.

With the cover 8 in open position, and with the motor turned off, thevessel 41 with its positioning member 53 is removed from the shaft I2 topermit the mould carrier to pivot on the pin 51 extending through theshaft. The mould selected for the casting operation is then clamped onits adaptor and. the Weights 21 and 28 are adjusted until the mouldcarrier is properly balanced on the pin 51. The vessel 41 and its member53 are then placed on the motor shaft to lock the carrier in fixedconnection therewith and the cover 8 is closed. With the ladle inupright position, the proper amount of metal is placed in the ladle andthen melted by any suitable means such as an acetylene torch, or thelike. While the metal is being heated, the motor is turned on to makesure that the mould carrier will be rotating at a. constant high rate ofspeed during the casting operation. When the metal has reached theproper melting point, the ladle is tilted to direct the molten metalinto the vessel 41 to complete the casting .operation as heretoforedescribed more in detail.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. In a casting device of the class described, a. housing, a mouldmounted to rotate about an axis within the housing, a vessel forreceiving a molten casting medium arranged central with the axis, saidvessel being in passage communication with the mould and having its topopen-end registering with a supply opening in the top of the housing,and a ladle mounte'd on the exterior of the housing for limited movementfrom an upright position to a tilted position in supplying relation withthe opening in the housing. I

2. A ladle for a casting device of the class described, comprising aVside-wall provided with a discharge passage formed with an outer passageportion directed laterallyof the wall and an inner passage portioncontinuing angularly upward into the ladle and opening therein above thebottom thereof and forming therebetween a Weir formation between theinterior of the ladle and the outer passage portion, and said sidewallhaving an upper deflecting Wall portion continuing angularly upward andinward of the ladle and over the Weir formation from the upper wall ofthe inner passage portion.

BERT L. HOOPER.

' CERTIFICATI- T.' OF CORRECTION. Patent No. 2,192,0t5. February 27,19m.

BERT L. HOOPER.A

It is 'hereby certified that error appears in the printed specificationofthe above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page,fizrsl:l column, -lins 18 after' "motor" insert shaft. To this end, asbest seeri in Figs. 7, 8; and that the said Letter-s Patent shouldbereadwith this cor--v rection therein that the same may conform to therecord of the case in the Patent Office. v

Signed and sealed this 2nd day of April, A; D. 19h0.

Henry Van Ar'sdale, Seal) Acting Connnis'sionef of Patents.

